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Peavey Bandit

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The Peavey Bandit is a guitar amplifier manufactured by the Peavey Electronics Corporation. It was originally introduced in 1980 and has been contiuously in production ever since.

Development

The very first Bandit was introduced in 1980; it was a solid-state amplifier with a 12" speaker and a power rating of 50 watts RMS. In the mid-nineties, Peavey began making the Bandit as part of their TransTube series, a solid-state technology aimed at emulating the sound of tube amplifiers.

Models

The Bandit

(1980) The very first Bandit was only made for one year. As subsequent versions became available, the original Bandit came to be known as the "Gunsmoke Bandit" because the font used to silkscreen the logo on the front of the amp resembled the font used in the opening credits of the popular 60's television show, Gunsmoke. The Gunsmoke Bandit was made in Meridian Mississippi USA and had a power rating of 50 watts RMS. It came equipped from the factory with a 12" guitar speaker made for Peavey by Eminence.

Solo Series Bandit

(1981-1983) The Solo Series Bandit soon followed the Gunsmoke Bandit and incorporated a variety of improvements, most notably a much improved sound. The Solo Series Bandit was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 65

(1983-1986) With the Solo Series Bandit 65, large improvements in tone compared to the previous version were again realized and the power rating was increased to 65 watts RMS. The Bandit 65 was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 75

(1987-1988) The Solo Series Bandit 75 saw the power increase by 10 watts to 75 watts RMS and a Bright Switch was added. The Bandit 75 was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.

Solo Series Bandit 112

(1988-1995) The Solo Series Bandit 112 introduced many new features, the most notable being an increase in power to 80 watts RMS and a choice between Peavey's Scorpion speaker and Peavey's newly introduced Sheffield speaker. Many of the innovations that would later be branded as "Transtube" were included in the Solo Series Bandit 112, but the name "Transtube" had not been adopted yet. There have been several different versions of the Solo Series Bandit 112 but they all share the same manual and the same control layout. One of the more popular variations is known as the "Teal Stripe" or "Blue Stripe" Bandit due to a blue horizontal stripe below the control panel. The Solo Series Bandit 112 was made in Meridian MS USA.

Transtube Series Bandit 112

(1996-1999) The Transtube Series Bandit 112 formally introduced Peavey's proprietary "Transtube" technology that allows a solid state amplifier to perform more like a vacuum tube amplifier. Central to the Transtube concept is a patented "power brake" that allows the user to control the amount of power required for dynamic range compression from the power amp, from 100% all the way down to 10%, thus enabling the amplifier to acheive power amp compression without running at full volume. The Transtube Series Bandit 112 was made in Meridian MS USA and came stock with the Sheffield 1230 speaker. Notably, it was also the first Bandit to have an external speaker jack, allowing external speakers to be run instead of or in parallel with the internal speaker. Running into 8 ohms, power is still 80 watts RMS, but running into 4 ohms (the equivalent of using the internal 8 ohm speaker together with an 8 ohm extension speaker) the power is increased to 100 watts RMS. Due to the black color and square shape of the Transtube Series Bandit 112, it is sometimes referred to as the "Blackbox Bandit".

Transtube Series II Bandit 112 Made in USA

(2000-2004) With the Transtube Series II, the metal corners and input jacks that had been standard on all Peavey Bandits up until this time were replaced by plastic corners and plastic jacks. The knob that controlled the Transtube power brake feature continuously from 10% to 100% power was replaced by a 3-way switch, allowing operation at 25%, 50%, and 100% power. Similar changes were made to the tone modification section of the amplifier to reduce unit costs. Due to a color scheme incorporating a red stripe across the front of the amplifier, many people refer to the Transtube Series II Bandit as the "Redstripe Bandit". During this time Peavey attempted to adopt a new company logo, and moved away from their traditional "pointy" logo. The new logo came to be known as the "Block Logo". The Block Logo was only used for a limited period of time, and the Block Logo Redstripe Bandits represent the last Peavey Bandits to be made in the USA.

Transtube Series II Bandit 112 Made in China

(2004-2007) This amp is cosmetically nearly identical to the USA version, so it is also referred to as "Redstripe Bandit", but there are several differences between the US built Redstripes and the Chinese ones. First, the Chinese version says, "Designed in the USA" on the front, while the actual USA version says "Designed and Made in the USA". Second, the speaker in the Chinese version is either unlabelled, or is labelled "Blue Marvel", a Peavey code for speakers made outside of Peavey and then rebranded as Peavey. All of the USA Redstripe Bandits shipped from the factory with US made Sheffield 1230 speakers. Another obvious difference is that all Chinese Redstripe Bandits have the "pointy logo" as Peavey abandoned it's plan to adopt a new logo. Most - but not all - of the USA Redstripe Bandits shipped with Block Logos.

Peavey Bandit with Transtube Technology

(2008-current) The current version of the Bandit is made in China and has essentially the same features as the Chinese Redstripe Bandit. Changes include the spring reverb tank being replaced by a digital reverb circuit, and Peavey has reintroduced metal corners. The footswitch is no longer included with the amp and must be purchased seperately.

Popularity

The Peavey Bandit is relatively powerful for its price, and has become quite popular among guitar players. In the United Kingdom, it was voted the number one amp in 1988, according to Music Trades.

Guitar Player tested the first TransTube model in 1996, and praised its value for money: "With its power and tonal flexibility, it offers amazing bang for the buck."

Criticism

Travis Nichols, in Punk Rock Etiquette, has some advice for aspiring guitar players: "Guitarists: I can't make your crappy Peavey Bandit sound like a Marshall stack. Save your paper-route money and buy a Marshall."

Notable users


References

  1. "Bandit 112". Peavey. Retrieved 4 February 2010.
  2. "U.K. Names Peavey 'Bandit' Number One Amp". Music Trades. 136 (7–12): 27. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
  3. Thompson, Art (July 1996). "Hundred watt menage a trois". Guitar Player. 30 (7): 128–29, 132, 158. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  4. Nichols, Travis (2008). Punk Rock Etiquette: The Ultimate How-to-Guide for DIY, Punk, Indie, and Underground Bands. MacMillan. p. 27. ISBN 9781596434158. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
  5. Kaiser, Henry (November 1997). "Tisziji Munoz: Metaphysical graffiti". Guitar Player. 31 (11): 31–32. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)

External links

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